


Kindling

by KatzRoad



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Anal Sex, Angst, Body Worship, Fantasizing, Hector-centric, M/M, Masturbation, Mutual Masturbation, One Night Stands, Past Relationship(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-04-09
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:33:46
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23222560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatzRoad/pseuds/KatzRoad
Summary: One quiet evening in the forest, Hector encounters a despondent Captain of the Guard. From then on he develops a particular interest and curiosity about Captain, which elicits thoughts and feelings that had long been dormant inside of him.
Relationships: Captain of Corona's Guard & Hector (Disney: Tangled), Captain of the Guard/Hector, Captain/Hector
Kudos: 13





	1. Chapter 1

Almost immediately, his bearcat rolls from its back and onto its feet with a growl. It’s not until his other bearcat comes over to growl with its partner does Hector look up from chopping potatoes. One bearcat growling meant usually nothing; either frustrated at the other or something trivial like a squirrel. Two bearcats growling meant someone, or something was approaching them. Hector jumps to his feet, the potatoes falling to the ground while the grip on his knife shifts from supper to battle.

His ears perk to the sound of twigs being stepped on and the rustling of bushes. Slowly, the knight eases around the campfire, his footsteps light and careful, to stand in front of his bearcats. He gestures for them to ease back; assuming this was a person, he’d rather deal with them head-on first. They can deal with the remains once he’s done with them, if they’re interested. The bearcats follow his orders and retreat a couple of steps. 

Hector remains silent as the twig crunching and rustling of leaves come closer. The grip around his knife tightens as the anticipation of a possible confrontation made his blood pump faster through his veins. As soon as the crunching and rustling were close enough, Hector pounces with a growl. The bearcats watch as their master disappears into the bushes and hear the sound of another person yelping. They remain in place as the sound of struggling could be heard beyond their line of sight.

Suddenly, Hector comes tumbling out of the bushes with the intruder in question. The pair continue to wrestle until the knight gets the upper hand and slams his opponent into the ground. He’s quick to straddle them, making sure to settle his weight on their chest and his knife against their throat. His own chest rises rapidly in labored breaths and he tries to ignore the sweat collecting on his brow. In the light of the campfire, Hector can see his uninvited guest clearly now.

His uninvited guest turns out to be a man taller and broader than Hector, which says a lot about his own strength and capabilities. Unlike the knight’s long, braided locks, the man’s hair has been trimmed short and against the crackling fire it looks almost tawny. There’s a cut that bleeds above his eyebrow from where Hector nicked him with his knife, and he sports a busted lip from where his face met the heel of Hector’s boot. He has a mustache and seems to be in the middle of growing a beard. Hector takes a moment to scrutinize every inch of the man’s face before their eyes lock together.

He can see resistance, but also fear and hesitation to escalate things even further. Still, he expects the man to shove him off and materialize a weapon so that they resume their tussle. It’s only when the minutes tick by and neither one moves does Hector realize this man wasn’t here to fight or out to collect some bounty on him. The bearcats watch as their master eases off the stranger, who lets out a pained grunt as the weight is removed from his chest. He reaches for his neck with a gloved hand and sighs in relief.

“The stew will be done in an hour.” the stranger looks up to Hector, who has his back turned to him. Pulling out a rag, Hector wipes the blood off his knife. A slight frown creases his brow; all that anticipation, wasted on what? A vagrant looking for a free meal? Incredible.

“It’s the least I can do.” Hector tags on after a long pause. It’s short of an apology, but one nonetheless.

...

An hour later, one bearcat is curled up against his rhino like before while the other sleeps on its back again. Hector sits before the campfire with a bowl, devouring meat and potatoes in a ravenous manner – the byproduct of having a high metabolism. He glances over to his guest sitting on the opposite side of the campfire: the bowl sits the stranger’s lap untouched and uneaten. That makes him raise an eyebrow in suspicion.

“Lost our appetite?” the knight asks, dabbing his mouth with the hem of his shirt. The stranger doesn’t look up to acknowledge him, his eyes are glued to the bowl. Hector stares at for a moment and then helps himself to another spoonful of potatoes.

It’s obvious the man is wallowing in self-pity, which Hector can only infer from what little evidence he’s got. He looks up again at the stranger and takes special notice of his clothes: gold armor that’s seen better days, a worn-out undershirt with the red fading, pants equally shabby, and boots caked in grime. What catches his attention in particular is the sun insignia in the center of the man’s armor. From that Hector can see this man is a member of Corona’s Royal Guard.

How a royal guard from Corona ended up all the way out here in the backcountry perplexes him. Considering his emotional state, Hector ponders if the man is recovering from some kind of traumatic event, like the loss of his battalion in a fierce battle. But there’s nothing out here for Corona to engage in battle with unless his knowledge of current events is now outdated. The knight wipes his chin free of gravy and then studies the man’s face again.

What if this wasn’t shock from battle, but shock from failure instead? That changes everything, doesn’t it? That would explain why Hector found someone like him out here: with failure comes reprimanding, demotion, and then banishment if the offense was that severe. A shame really, because aside from the signs of neglect in appearance, this man seems to be in the best shape of his life.

“You really should eat. You can’t just survive out here on your bulk alone.” Hector tries again to make his guest eat. His fellow Brotherhood members would’ve been surprised with the benevolence he is displaying, which goes to show how little they truly knew him. He could be compassionate when it felt appropriate.

And right now it felt appropriate. Setting his bowl aside, Hector leans forward and watches the fire crackle before him, fingers knitted together. He can understand what failure is like: it was his failure he couldn’t defend his post at the Great Tree, it was his failure that Adira and those fools continued their march into the oblivion that was the Dark Kingdom, and it was his failure that the Moonstone fell into the wrong hands and now the whole world faced uncertain calamity. It was all his failure.

“What is your name?” the knight asks. There is a long, somber pause before his guest introduces himself as Captain. Not Captain Matthews or even Captain Roderick. Just ‘Captain’. Hector stares at him for a moment and then rolls his eyes. It’s better than nothing.

“Well Captain, it was nice for you to join me and my companions for dinner tonight.” Hector grabs his bowl and then rises to his feet with a grunt. He stretches his arm over the campfire and then tips his bowl, the flames glowing brighter with the inclusion of leftover meat and fat. He looks back to Captain, eyes still glued to his own untouched bowl.

Hector walks over to his rhino and pulls out a couple of things from his saddlebag. When he returns, the knight drops an old lumpy pillow and an old blanket that’s been nibbled on by moths beside Captain. “You’re welcomed to stay the night with us, if you’re interested.” he offers.

He doesn’t expect Captain to take up his invitation, but he leaves it up for grabs if the other changes his mind. Hector goes about to preparing his campsite for bed, cleaning up to dissuade potential scavengers, securing his belongings, and making sure his bearcats and rhino have been well-fed for the night. In the mist of preparing, he looks over to Captain.

His eyes are still glued to the bowl, but he’s taken a spoonful of now cold meat and potatoes. Hector smirks. Some progress is better than none.

...

It takes a few hours for the campfire to burn itself out, leaving embers to glow and smolder in its wake. With his arms tucked behind his head, Hector lays sleepless on the ground and casts his eyes to the night sky above him. A blanket of stars twinkle against the blackness and leave him contemplating his uncertain future. He rolls onto his side when he’s seen enough, one of his arms coming down to clutch his chest protectively.

From there he looks over to Captain, who sleeps with his back turned to him. He’d taken up his offer to spend the night with Hector and his companions – but left the blanket and pillow unclaimed. How could anyone pass up a free pillow and blanket were beyond him. He’s even sleeping with his armor still on, unlike Hector who usually dresses down for bed.

How uncomfortable that breastplate must be to sleep in. Hector turns away with a smirk, finding comfort knowing his sleeping attire isn’t so out of fetch in comparison. The knight stares up at the stars once more and waits until he’s tired enough to start falling asleep. He knows he’s too restless right now to sleep. There’s too many questions left unanswered inside his head.

Hector finds himself rolling onto his side again to look at Captain. There’s too many questions he’d left unanswered for him. Hector closes his eyes and sighs in agitation. Perhaps there’ll be answers for him in the morning. At least, he hopes there’ll be a morning for them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, here is the beginning of a multi-part story with Captain and Hector! I was originally going to post it one long affair but realizing it would be quite the one-shot, I decided to break it into multiple chapters for easier reading. There will be explicit content in later chapters, but right now things are staring slow.
> 
> Feedback is welcomed!


	2. Chapter 2

The smell of smoke wafts into Hector’s nose, causing his eyes to snap open and him to lurch forward with alarm. It takes him a moment to remember he’s in no immediate danger and then he settles back with a tired sigh, draping an arm over his face. The pastel hues of the new morning are there to greet him when he moves his arm and Hector stares at the sky feeling tired instead of refreshed. He blinks a couple of times and then rises forward with a grunt.

His brow scrunches into a frown at the smell of smoke and he pinches the bridge of his nose. He turns to see the campfire revived with fresh game roasting above the flames on a spit, with Captain cracking eggs into Hector’s skillet beside it. The knight’s face softens when Captain looks at him; he doesn’t seem as sullen as he did the previous night, which means Hector’s dealing with a whole new person this morning. Captain stares at him for a moment and then turns back to cooking breakfast.

Hector rises to his feet then and stretches his arms with a yawn. He massages the crink in his neck and then pulls off his shirt in one swoop, turning around to face Captain and the campfire again. He watches as Captain glances up to him and then prods the eggs with Hector’s spatula. The knight stares at him for a moment before walking past him to go about his morning rituals.

To his surprise, Captain has already completed most of them: his bearcats have been fed, along with his rhino, there was a generous amount of wood for the campfire, and water had been drawn for the long road ahead. Was this all in return for sharing a bowl of meat and potatoes? Hector doesn’t know if should be impressed or tell Captain this was more than excessive. He shakes his head with a smirk. At least now he doesn’t have to do it himself.

He returns to the campfire after preening alongside the local brook and discovers a plate of breakfast waiting for him. As the night before, the men sit opposite of each other and eat their meal in silence. The only difference is that Hector watches Captain eat without reluctance, signifying the change of mood from last night. Hopefully, that means he’ll be more willing to talk.

From a few questions, Hector learns Captain is indeed a member of Corona’s Royal Guard and not some highwayman wearing the clothes of his latest crime. Corona was dealing with a ‘dire’ crisis that needed its princess right away and he was sent to retrieve her. He also receives a belated answer to his question from last night, as Captain reveals his real name is Roderick, though he adds that he’s used to people referring to him by title. Hector can’t help but feel the other’s melancholy from last night is related to Corona’s situation but stops himself short from prodding any further.

For now, the knight is content with enjoying breakfast. And what a damn fine breakfast it is. He’d forgotten how good a meal can be when someone else cooks for you.

The rest of the day is punctuated with travel. From his saddle, Hector keeps his rhino’s pace no greater than a brisk walk, even though usually he covers a lot more ground in a gallop. He glances over the shoulder to see Roderick trailing behind him, accompanied by his bearcats on either side. He’s astonished with how quickly the bearcats have warmed up to him, seeing as they only just met him the previous night.

Hector is even more astonished he’s still in the company of Roderick. He’d expected after breakfast the two would go their separate ways. But it soon turns out both men were heading in the same direction and without saying it outright, they both agreed to stick together for the time being. At least then one could rely on the other to get them out of a hairy situation if needed.

Feeling restless, the knight glances back to Roderick and studies him for a moment. He looks him over from head to toe, turning away when their eyes meet. There’s something about this man that just captures his attention. The fact that he can’t put a definite finger on it frustrates him to a degree. He never had this much trouble being in the company of Adira or Quirin.

“Thank you.” Hector turns back to Roderick, who smiles in gratitude at him. It’s action that catches him off guard – and it’s usually hard to catch him off guard. He turns forward to clear his throat, a strange flutter ripples through his chest, and then turns back to the captain.

“It’s just a meal, no need to get sentimental.” Hector smirks, masking his composure. Roderick shies away from his smirk and scratches the back of his head. When he looks up to the knight again, there’s a tinge of scarlet in his cheek.

Hector turns forward again to clear his throat. His own cheeks feel unreasonably warm. He grits his teeth. This was going to be a long day.

...

“Seriously?” Hector huffs. He watches Roderick turn to him with an eyebrow raised. The bearcat lying its head on Roderick’s lap turns as well, ears flicking back with anticipation of being scolded. “You’re going to sleep in that again?” he asks.

Roderick blinks once and then looks down at the armor he’s wearing. The bearcat’s ears flick forward again, and it returns to lying down. “Is that a problem…?” he touches the sun insignia with his glove.

“You’ve been wearing that even before we’ve met and judging from the grime, I think it’s overdue for a good wash. Plus I can’t imagine it’s comfortable sleeping in a breastplate all the time.” Hector points out. He was never the one to wear armor: such bulk would slow him down in battle. He preferred clothes that were breathable and can handle getting rough.

He watches Roderick contemplate his remark with a frown before his face softens in agreement. The captain sits up, drawing mild annoyance to the bearcat in his lap, who inches back to give him some room to move around. Hector turns away for a moment so he can finish his preparations for bed and then glances back at Roderick again. At this point, the straps holding his armor together have been unfastened and he watches them be removed with a relived grunt.

Without the armor obstructing it, Hector now can see the wear and tear in Roderick’s undershirt, along with the stitches keeping them all together. He can also now see the well-built chest that had been obstructed by armor as well, which makes him do a double take. He already knew the captain was a big man – he didn’t expect Roderick to actually have the muscle to back up his size. It wouldn’t be the first time he’s come across someone who only looked big due to a few clever choices with attire.

He remains silent while Roderick takes off his undershirt, eyebrow rising with interest as that well-built chest is fully revealed in all its bruised and sweaty glory. The knight blinks and then realizes he’s been staring a whole lot longer than what’s considered appropriate. He turns away with a gasp, which catches Roderick’s attention. Feeling the other’s eyes on him, Hector fakes a cough and insists he’s all right.

Hector can feel his cheeks growing unreasonably warm again. He grits his teeth and runs a hand through his black locks. It’s not like he’s never seen a man shirtless before (Quirin comes to mind), so why would Roderick be any different? So what if he was muscular – Quirin was muscular too, no big deal right? Though if Hector had to be honest, Quirin never had such firm abs like Roderick does…

“Hector?” the knight jumps at his name being called. He turns around then cranes his neck up to Roderick, who’s now on his feet. Hector musters all his strength to refrain from lingering as he meets his eyes. A hard challenge, because from where he sits, those pecs look even bigger.

“We’re low on water, I’m going to fetch us some.” Roderick informs, raising Hector’s bucket. Hector gives him a nod and then turns to leave. The bearcat that had been laying on his lap rises up as well and follows after him with a friendly growl.

Hector keeps his eye on them until they disappear into the bushes. He then finally lays down for the night, letting his head sink into the down feathers of his pillow. He lies there for a moment and then feels that strange flutter ripple through his chest again. His brow scrunches into a frown.

This was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At last, I got this second chapter done! Nothing substantially explicit yet, but there's inkling of where things are heading.
> 
> I feel like after spending so many years cooped up inside a tree, Hector is more or less out of tune with his emotions and libido because y'know, protecting the Moonstone triumphs everything else. Plus it's someone new and strange to him - he's used to Adira and Quirin because they're all in tune with each other, Captain's a whole new (and confusing) ballpark for him.
> 
> Feedback is welcomed!


End file.
